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The author of the highly acclaimedFounding Gardenersnow gives us an enlightening chronicle of the first truly international scientific endeavor—the eighteenth-century quest to observe the transit of Venus and measure the solar system. On June 6, 1761, the world paused to observe a momentous occasion: the first transit of Venus between the earth and the sun in more than a century. Through that observation, astronomers could calculate the size of the solar system—but only if they could compile data from many different points of the globe, all recorded during the short period of the transit. Overcoming incredible odds and political strife, astronomers from Britain, France, Russia, Germany,… Sweden, and the American colonies set up observatories in remote corners of the world, only to have their efforts thwarted by unpredictable weather and warring armies. Fortunately, transits of Venus occur in pairs: eight years later, the scientists would have another opportunity to succeed. Chasing Venusbrings to life the personalities of the eighteenth-century astronomers who embarked upon this complex and essential scientific venture, painting a vivid portrait of the collaborations, the rivalries, and the volatile international politics that hindered them at every turn. In the end, what they accomplished would change our conception of the universe and would forever alter the nature of scientific research.

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Andrea Wulf trained as a design historian at the Royal College of Art and is the co-author (with Emma Gieben-Gamal) of This Other Eden and The Brother Gardeners, which was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Award. She has written for The Sunday Times, the Financial Times, The Garden, The Architectsï¿½ Journal, and regularly reviews for several newspapers, including the Guardian and the Times Literary Supplement.

Author's Note

Dramatis Personae

Prologue: The Gauntlet

Transit

Call to Action

The French Are First

Britain Enters the Race

To Siberia

Getting Ready for Venus

Day of Transit, 6 June 1761

How Far to the Sun?

Transit

A Second Chance

Russia Enters the Race

The Most Daring Voyage of All

Scandinavia or the Land of the Midnight Sun

The North American Continent

Racing to the Four Corners of the Globe

Day of Transit, 3 June 1769

After the Transit

Epilogue: A New Dawn

List of Observers 1761

List of Observers 1769

Selected Bibliography, Sources and Abbreviations

Suggested Further Reading

Picture Credits

Acknowledgements

Notes

Index

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